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Police nab two Russians, one Indonesian in abduction

Other News Materials 18 December 2008 09:40 (UTC +04:00)

Indonesian police have arrested two Russians and a local man for their alleged involvement in abducting a Russian businessman, media reports said Thursday.

The two Russians, identified only as Alex and Igor, and Richard Sihite, an Indonesian citizen, were arrested Wednesday in Serpong, West Java, dpa reported.

Police freed the kidnapped Russian businessman, identified as Colavenko Alexandre, 37, and confiscated a laptop, 1,300 dollars and 50 million rupiah (4,560 dollars) in cash as evidence, The Jakarta Post reported.

Detective Senior Commissioner Muhammad Iriawan, Jakarta's police chief, quoted Alexandre as saying he came to Indonesia after receiving a business invitation through the internet.

Alexandre was abducted by a group of people immediately after he arrived at Jakarta's Soekarno-Hatta International Airport on December 12, Iriawan said.

He said the kidnappers took Alexandre directly to a rented house and demanded 60,000 dollars in ransom. The victim contacted his wife in Moscow, asking her to transfer the money, the police chief said.

Alexandre's wife called the Russian embassy in Jakarta for help after she became suspicious because he had never asked for that much money before.

Based on a preliminary investigation, the garment business deal offered on the internet to Alexandre was a hoax, Iriawan said.

Iriawan said the suspects were believed to have abducted another Russian businessman early this month. Last week, a Russian businessman was abducted by a new business colleague who invited him to Indonesia after they met on the internet.

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